The present invention relates to a sun visor for a vehicle, having a holding unit which can be fastened to the interior, and an antidazzle unit which is arranged on the holding unit, has a visor body of essentially planar design, and can be moved, for antidazzle purposes, from a retracted position into a functional position, the sun visor being arranged in particular between a driver""s sun visor and front-passenger""s sun visor.
Sun visors of this type are fitted in high piece numbers into car interiors. They are intended, on the one hand, to be producible economically and, on the other hand, to ensure permanent and reliable functioning and simple installation.
The sun visor under consideration is usually positioned above the interior mirror of a vehicle between the driver""s sun visor and front-passenger""s sun visor and is intended to act there as an antidazzle means as soon as any dazzling effects act in this region on the driver. In this case, the sun visor is preferably actuated manually by the driver.
Known sun visors consist of two half shells which are either ultrasonically sealed or clipped to each other during production of the sun visor. This entails an increased outlay on production, since two components have to be processed. Moreover, an outer decorative groove or a welding bead is visible, which in many cases is not desirable for visual reasons. This sun visor has a defined outer contour adapted to the spatial conditions in the region between the driver""s sun visor and front-passenger""s sun visor. In a further known embodiment of a sun visor, the surface contour consists of a foamed PP or PU plastic body into which a so-called plastic insert has been inserted for stability reasons and which also forms the rotating spindle to which the holding device is connected. The foamed plastic together with a plastic insert is sealed as a whole by film. In addition to a complicated production process, a sun visor of this type has strength properties which are not in the optimum range.
German utility model G 94 12 656 discloses a sun visor of the type mentioned at the beginning, which is distinguished in that the visor body is designed in one piece as a profiled unit which is essentially closed and is present at least in some areas. This does indeed offer manufacturing advantages, the outer circumference contour of the sun visor being fixedly defined.
German utility model 299 05 597 discloses a sun visor which is distinguished in that a damping unit acts on the movement of the visor body from the retracted position to the functional position and vice versa.
All of the sun visors which are already known and are arranged in the region between the driver""s sun visor and front-passenger""s sun visor have a clearly defined outer circumferential contour adapted to the structural conditions of the vehicle interior in this region.
The present invention is based on the object or the technical problem of specifying a sun visor of the type mentioned at the beginning, which has an improved antidazzle action and at the same time can be produced economically, fitted economically and ensures permanent and reliable functioning.
The sun visor according to the invention is provided by the features of independent claim 1. Advantageous refinements and developments are the subject matter of the dependent claims.
Accordingly, the sun visor according to the invention is distinguished in that the visor body has at least one moveable surface unit which increases the surface of the visor body, when the visor body is moved from the retracted position to the functional position, and conversely reduces the surface of the visor body when it is moved from the functional position into the retracted position.
The sun visor according to the invention makes it possible for the region, which normally cannot be covered between the driver""s sun visor and front-passenger""s sun visor in the unfolded state of the interior sun visor, since the interior sun visor may not exceed a certain width in the retracted position owing to structural constraints, to be reliably covered in spite of this, thereby reliably increasing the antidazzle protection.
A particularly preferred refinement which can be implemented in a structurally simple manner is distinguished, in a first design variant, in that the surface unit is designed to be mounted on the visor body in a manner enabling it to be displaced along an axis.
A particularly preferred refinement which can be implemented in a structurally simple manner is distinguished, in a second design variant, in that the surface unit is mounted on the visor body in a manner enabling it to be rotated about an axis of rotation.
An alternative refinement preferably implementing the structural boundary conditions is distinguished in that there are two surface units which are arranged at the lateral end edge regions of the visor body.
As regards the movement of the visor body, a folding movement about an axis of rotation is conceivable, on the one hand, and displacement essentially vertically out of the holding unit is possible.
In order to increase the ease of operation, a preferred refinement is distinguished in that the movement of the visor body and of the surface units is triggered by actuating an actuating member, which is preferably designed as an actuating knob.
One design variant has been developed as a means of protecting the material, said design variant being distinguished in that a damping unit acts on the movement of the visor body.
A design variant which can be implemented in a structurally particularly simple manner and ensures permanent and reliable functioning is distinguished in that an articulated-rod mechanism is arranged between the holding unit and surface unit, said mechanism effecting the movement of the surface unit when the visor body is moved, a particularly advantageous development being distinguished in that the articulated-rod mechanism has an articulated rod which is respectively connected in an articulated manner, via a ball-and-socket joint, to the holding unit and to a projecting unit integrally formed on the surface unit, the projecting unit being guided in a longitudinally displaceable manner in a recess on the visor body.
A further design variant according to the invention which can be implemented in a structurally simple manner and at the same time ensures long-lasting functionality is distinguished in that the axis of rotation of the surface unit is arranged within the visor body and essentially perpendicularly with respect to the outer surface thereof and in a manner enabling it to be swung through a recess on the side end side of the visor body, a spring unit acting on the surface unit and moving the surface unit into the functional position, and the holding unit closing the recess in the retracted position of the visor body, releasing it in the functional position and, when the visor body is retracted counter to the action of the spring unit, rotating the surface unit into the interior of the visor body.
A particularly advantageous third design variant of the sun visor according to the invention is distinguished in that the articulated-rod mechanism has a connecting rod which is mounted on the holding unit and during folding of the visor body acts in a pushing or pulling manner on a sliding unit, an articulated bar is coupled to the surface unit, an L-shaped articulated lever is arranged between the articulated bar and the sliding unit and is mounted in the region of the intersecting point of its legs in a manner enabling it to rotate about an axis of rotation, the articulated bar is coupled in an articulated manner in the free end region of the one leg of the articulated lever, the sliding unit is mounted rotatably in a linear guide of the other leg.
In order to obtain a compact construction, all of the units of the articulated mechanism are present within the visor body, all of the components of movement of the individual parts when unfolding the visor body in order to extend or retract the surface units also taking place within the visor body.
A structurally particularly simple and economical solution is distinguished in that the linear guide is designed as a slotted recess in the one leg of the L-shaped articulated lever.
A particularly preferred refinement of the sun visor according to the invention, which ensures particularly good ease of operation, is distinguished in that the sun visor is designed as a central sun visor next to a driver""s sun visor, there are position-recognition means for recognizing the position of the driver""s sun visor, which is rotatable about an axis of rotation, there are ambient-light-recognition means, there is a control unit which evaluates the signals from the position-recognition means and the ambient-light-recognition means and which activates the motor assembly for moving (H; K) the sun visor from the retracted position into the functional position and vice versa.
In a particularly preferred manner, the control unit automatically enables the movement of the central sun visor as soon as the driver""s sun visor is moved manually by the driver. This may also take place with a certain time delay.
The position-recognition means are preferably designed as magnetic Hall sensors.
Further embodiments and advantages of the invention are produced by the features furthermore mentioned in the claims and by the exemplary embodiments given below. The features of the claims may be combined with one another in any desired manner insofar as they are obviously not mutually exclusive.